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Steel Prices

I'm just a beginner and purchase little so I know I'm not going to get big boy discounts but I hope to be as frugal as possible about what I purchase. I almost had a heart attack the first time I went to the steel store (not Lowes/Home Depot).

I've used this web site before just to get an idea of what something might cost as opposed to what I have to pay at the steel store. I don't buy here as the shipping makes it unreasonably priced for the little guy.

I used that exact website to see what I would be paying for a 2'x4'x1/4" steel plate...when I got to the local metal supplier the plate was less than half that sites quote (without calculating shipping).....call the shop you are going to buy from to get an accurate price

You should consider scrap if thats available to you. I used to live very near an excellent scrap yard allowing me to rarely buy new. Depending on weight purchased, price varied between .25 and .35/lb. For sure you'll have to work w/i whats available but I didnt find that too difficult.

I found a pretty good source of steel about 10 miles NW of Chicago. He charged me $0.90/lb for anything I wanted. Lots of 1/8" up to 1 1/4" stuff. They build Industrial Machinery so they are mostly cut-offs and such, both large and small. He said he could also cut me some 1/8" or thicker plate and he would still charge the $0.90/lb. I didn't see much in the way of sheet steel, but his prices are the best I've found so far near me.

You should consider scrap if thats available to you. I used to live very near an excellent scrap yard allowing me to rarely buy new. Depending on weight purchased, price varied between .25 and .35/lb. For sure you'll have to work w/i whats available but I didnt find that too difficult.

i live about 1/4 mile from a dump and get alot of scrap too but i found the best deals are from employees at the steel yards. when they get a shipment of steel in there is always a bent piece so they throw it into a pile and when the pile gets big enough they sell it to the scrap yards.one day when i was there buying some steel i asked a guy about the scrap pile they had an he told me man come back saturday with a trailer so i did .they loaded me up with everything i asked for . cold roll/plate/angle iron. i gave them each a 100.00 and they said come back anytime and i do. you can also ask the salseman and sometimes they will sell it to you too. the salsemen i asked had a bit higher price but they all told me the same thing that the pile of scrap was sold for the employees to have bbq's and stuff so now i just go striaght to the employees and ask.these days they rather money than a bbq so i figure if it's for them then let them get what they want.

after you do a few jobs you'll have all the material you need just add extra to your bid price that way every job you do you can add the extra piece of material to your stock.

As well as location the type of material you buy affects price. Structural such as angle, channel etc. is usually the cheapest. Tubing is usually the highest.

On average I would say .60 to .80 per pound for structural & .90 to 1.20 for tube. Sheet is usually in the same range as structural. Although my steel guy will do limited cuts for free if I need a bunch of stuff cut or sheared I pay him. Big box stores are expensive but convenient for the homeowner. The steel guy doesn't want to sell someone a two foot pc. of angle.

I find it helpful to chat with the guys in person. I needed a piece of 12ga cold rolled steel but only 25"x78". He ended up selling it to me for the same price per # as the full sheet and sheared it too. I've found a lot of it is how you approach it.

I usually buy full sheets or lengths of tube but I'm not afraid to pay an extra 5-10% to have the item sheared or cut. Usually having them shear it saves me tons of time with the plasma. Plus no consumables to buy.